Import EV brands pose a threat to local EVs with various segments
pulsenews.co.kr, 25 May '20
The popularity of imported electric vehicles in South Korea is growing faster than domestic rivals thanks to a wider range of segments, forcing Korean car makers to diversify their EV lineups to win back the heart of consumers at their home turf.
According to data released by the Korea Automobile Manufacturers Association and the Korea Automobile Import & Distributors Association on Monday, EV sales in Korea totaled 14,425 units in the first four months of this year, up 40.1% from a year ago.
A total of 4,264 import EVs were sold from January to April, jumping more than seven-fold from the same period of last year, whereas EV sales by Korean finished car makers rose a mere 4.4% on year to 10,161 units.
U.S.-based electric vehicle giant Tesla drove the surge in import EV sales after delivering 4,075 cars, up from 236 a year earlier. The top best-selling import model was Tesla's Model 3 sedan, launched in November last year in Korea. Nissan's Leaf were sold 99 units (down 60.6%), BMW's i3 53 units (down 3.6%), Mercedes-Benz's EQC400 23 units, and Jaguar's I-Pace EV400 14 units (down 26.3%).
Among local brands, this year's new releases such as Hyundai Motor's Porter II Electric and Kia Motors' Bongo Ⅲ EV have been received well, with sales of 2,684 units and 1,256 units, respectively.
Sales of sedan models, however, fell 36.1% on year to 6,221 units.
Hyundai Motor's Kona EV sales dropped 36.2% to 2,871 units over the same period, Hyundai Ioniq Electric down 0.2% to 503 units, Kia Niro EV down 46.1% to 1,211 units, Kia Soul EV 98 units (-86.9%), Chevrolet Volt EV 1,074 units (-2.5%), Renault Twizy 145 units (-58.3%), and Renault SM3 Z.E. 319 units (+61.9%).
EV sales have slowed in the local market, except for Tesla models, which is a contrary to the steady growth in overall car sales driven by the government's tax relief program. Domestic electric vehicles underperformed their foreign rivals due to the lack of EV lineups, industry observers said. Korean brands produce mostly compact utility EV models such as Kona EV and Niro EV, which accounted for 65.6% of their total EV shipments.
With a wider selection of models, Tesla has rapidly become a formidable competitor against Korean EVs that are mostly compact SUV models.
Other foreign car makers are also actively seeking to make inroads into the Korean EV market with new models. Mercedes-Benz last year released EQC400 and exhibited all-electric concept sedan Vision EQS with superfast-charging and lasting battery this month.
To fend off foreign rivals' fast ascent at home turf, Korean names also are preparing to add new models to their EV lineups.
Hyundai Motor is readying to roll out its next-generation EV model, codenamed NE, based on its self-developed EV-dedicated platform E-GMP early next year. Its existing EV models have shared traditional combustion engine platforms, but the special E-GMP platform only for EVs is designed to help improve the quality of EV models with a spacious interior achieved by the batteries placed under the car's floor.
The luxury sedan brand Genesis under Hyundai Motor Group also will release a new EV model in 2021 with an aim to expand the EV lineup from 2024. Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors earlier vowed to expand their EV lineup to 23 by 2025.
SsangYong Motor also is preparing launch of an EV based on the same platform as Korando SUV next year.